Tell It: The Art of the Public NarrativeUsing Stories as a Tool for Social Change

Tell It

Workshop Objectives

• Learn the basics of how public narrative works: values, emotion, and story structure

• Learn criteria for an effective public narrative and coach others on improving their own

• Practice and get coaching• Develop the groundwork for a story to bring

back into your work

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Leadership

Taking responsibility for enabling ourselves and others to achieve

purpose in the face of uncertainty

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3 Parts of Public Narrative

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How Do We Use Stories?

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Stories show others how we were drawn to the Movement and motivated to take action!

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How do stories move us to action?

How Why

ACTION!

StrategyAnalysis

StoryMotivation

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Stories help us feel the emotions that remind us of our values

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Tell It

What makes a story?

Scale with Soul.

Wisconsin State Capitol-2011

13 Scale with Soul

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Challenge

What challenge did you face?

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Strategic Choice

What’s the strategic choice you made?

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Outcome

What happened as a result of your choice?

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Developing Your Story of Self: Courage of Introspection

• What are the experiences in your life that

have shaped your values and led you to do

this work?

• When did you first care about being heard?

• When did you feel like you had to act?

• Why did you feel like you had to act?

• What were the circumstances, the place,

the colors, and sounds?

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Stories of Self

• Don’t be abstract (Tell the story, not about the

story: specific, vivid, clear).

• Don’t tell your whole life! (pick 2 or 3 choice

points).

• Don’t give your resume (vs. telling a story).

• Therapy vs. Vulnerability

Avoid the Pitfalls

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Stories of Us and Now

Motivating othersThe US

• Who is the “us” that the

listener/your audience

identifies with?

• What common values

can we appeal to?

• What challenges does

our community face?

Motivating othersThe NOW

• How do we make the

challenge feel real to

them?

• What gives them real

incentive to take action

• What is the first step the

person can take to be a

part of the solution?

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Coaching Tips

• Identify Choice Points: Ask more about them

• Who is the audience: Do we think they’d listen?

• Find the roots: Ask Why

• What was the challenge? Choice? And Outcome?

• Show, don’t tell

• Time!

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Breakout

✓ Silently Develop your Public Narrative - 10 mins✓ Pair & Share - 12 mins✓ Debrief - 10 mins✓ Upfront Share-10 mins

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Time to debrief